


Living Here the Same

by InvertedPhantasmagoria



Category: Diabolik Lovers
Genre: Abuse, Aftermath of Torture, Alternate Universe, Bathing/Washing, Begging, Blood Drinking, Brotherly Love, Crying, Dehumanization, Domestication, Eye Trauma, Fluff and Angst, Gen, Heavy Angst, Implied/Referenced Rape/Non-con, Implied/Referenced Torture, Nightmares, Non-Sexual Slavery, Pet au, Platonic Cuddling, Scars, Slavery, Starvation, Trauma, Trust Issues, Vampires
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-06
Updated: 2021-03-06
Packaged: 2021-03-12 06:21:39
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,088
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29880372
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/InvertedPhantasmagoria/pseuds/InvertedPhantasmagoria
Summary: Yuuma’s home is about as good as it gets. He was taken from the shelter last, sure, but... he can be content. He has an owner who goes easy on him, who doesn’t have any interest in unnecessary punishments or unneeded cruelty. He has a bed in the garage— heated, at that—, maintains a large yard with flowers and trees everywhere, and lives safely.It’s okay like that. He thinks of his brothers every day, where they are and if they’re safe, but he has a life of his own to focus on.And it’s just a matter of tuning out the perpetual worries. Yuuma’s a protector by nature. He was always the one who kept everyone safe. His big body could take beatings, so he’d get in the way whenever he had to. He’d make sure that he bore the brunt of whatever punishment the employees would deal out. There was no shame in his scars back then, and even now, his owner doesn’t seem to care. So long as he’s docile and does his job well, they leave him alone and don’t go out of their way to do him harm.
Relationships: Mukami Kou & Mukami Yuuma
Comments: 2
Kudos: 35





	Living Here the Same

**Author's Note:**

> Another tumblr fic! o3o Pet Au, again, but this time we have Yuuma and Kou suffering together! The general premise here is that Yuuma has a pretty decent home, and Kou gets adopted into the same place. From there, it's just picking up the pieces of a very broken boy. 
> 
> There are some warnings here, mostly regarding what Kou's been through. There's abuse, rape, torture, and some other nasties, but all in the past and just implied. It's mostly Yuuma trying to make Kou okay again, so the actual fic is more healing than hurting~ Despite all the warnings, things are pretty fluffy... and sad. >3>
> 
> dixbolik-lovers.tumblr.com

Yuuma’s home is about as good as it gets. He was taken from the shelter last, sure, but... he can be content. He has an owner who goes easy on him, who doesn’t have any interest in unnecessary punishments or unneeded cruelty. He has a bed in the garage— heated, at that—, maintains a large yard with flowers and trees everywhere, and lives safely. 

It’s okay like that. He thinks of his brothers every day, where they are and if they’re safe, but he has a life of his own to focus on. 

And it’s just a matter of tuning out the perpetual worries. Yuuma’s a protector by nature. He was always the one who kept everyone safe. His big body could take beatings, so he’d get in the way whenever he had to. He’d make sure that he bore the brunt of whatever punishment the employees would deal out. There was no shame in his scars back then, and even now, his owner doesn’t seem to care. So long as he’s docile and does his job well, they leave him alone and don’t go out of their way to do him harm. 

On a day like any other, Yuuma spends his time outside. It’s late spring when the weather is just starting to get warm, and the sun shines down on his shoulders brightly. He’s tending the vegetable garden that he helped his owner plant last week, his muscles burn pleasantly, and he takes note of the way that the sprouts are popping up with pride in his work. 

He’s been out there for maybe two hours when the truck pulls up. Yuuma glances over to see what kind of vehicle just stopped in the driveway... only to realize that it’s a delivery truck meant for a  _ vampire.  _

It’s impossible not to stare. Yuuma pauses in his work long enough to watch the truck come to a stop. The back of it is out of view from where he is, so he’s not going to be able to tell who comes out of it, but still, he has to at least try to see. He’s been alone in your home thus far, so who...?

Wondering if he’d be allowed to go check on what’s happening, Yuuma stares for a while longer. No, he couldn’t. He has work to be doing. 

It’s not his place to question this kind of thing. 

So Yuuma goes back to work. He’s distracted, but he tries to focus on what he’s doing. He was supposed to come to check in once he was done, anyway, so it’ll only be a little bit longer before he can know. 

And Yuuma thinks. What his head winds up settling on as he pulls up weeds and hoes the clear soil is a big ‘what if’. What if it’s one of his brothers? That couldn’t be possible. The chances are much too low. They’d been adopted out already, anyway, so there’s no way that could be true. Even so, Yuuma’s chest feels tight. He hasn’t seen any of them in well over a year. The very  _ thought  _ of it... it makes him much too tense. Too anxious. 

Eventually, the garden is taken care of. The truck has long since left, most likely leaving the vampire that was inside of it behind. 

Yuuma picks up his tools and heads to the garage. He puts everything away as neatly as he can, wipes the sweat off his forehead, and tries to calm down. He’s gotta keep it together. Wishing won’t do him any good. 

There’s a note tacked to the garage door telling him to come inside when he gets done. That’s... unusual. Yuuma isn’t allowed inside very often. Only when there’s something special going on. As he’s supposed to, Yuuma kneels. He’s allowed to stand when he’s out working, but he’s still expected to behave like a  _ proper  _ pet when he’s indoors or around his owner. 

Carefully, he knocks on the door, then opens it just enough to slip through. Whatever’s coming next, Yuuma can’t help but worry about it. He’s not the anxious sort normally, but this... he keeps thinking of stupid things that are better off buried and forgotten, long gone, and where they belong. 

“Ah, there you are,” his owner says. As usual, they’re in their chair in the main room, the television playing faintly in the background. “Done?”

Yuuma nods. “Yes, owner.”

“Good. You probably noticed, but I brought someone new in today. Another vampire. There were... circumstances. He’s going to need a lot of work, though, and I don’t want to have to deal with all of it,” his owner explains. “You’ll be looking after him for a while. I’ll ease back on your duties, but I want you to make sure he settles in and adjusts. Be a caretaker for a while, and we’ll figure out what to do from there.” They take a drink of their coffee and sigh lightly. There’s obvious disinterest in their tone. 

Nodding again, Yuuma tries to think of what he could possibly be doing. He’s a labor type, not the kind who stays inside and... looks after another vampire. Yuuma knows that he has a protective nature, that much is obvious, but this still comes off as sort of strange. Whatever. From the sound of it, the other vampire is fucked up, and he doesn’t mind doing what he can for that. He remembers well doing the same back at the shelter. 

After spending so long alone, it’ll be nice, Yuuma thinks. His owner tells him that the other vampire is in the laundry room that leads to the garage. His space is there, but it’s Yuuma’s job to make sure he’s contained and not hurting himself. That’s immediately concerning.  _ Hurting  _ himself?

But Yuuma agrees. He’ll have to deal with it either way, after all. When dismissed, he makes his way to the laundry room, bracing himself. 

Inside, Yuuma expects the worst. There’s a small cage up against one wall, a blanket partially draped over it. The lights are off, but there’s a small body curled up inside. Yuuma creeps closer. At first, he assumes that the vampire is sleeping, but the visible shiver and the way that he presses himself closer to the far wall of the cage quickly gives away otherwise. This one’s got trouble. Yuuma can tell right away that he’s damn terrified. 

“Hey,” he starts, his voice the same tone he’d use  _ back then _ . “Take it easy. I ain’t gonna hurt ya’. I’m not a human. Just another vampire, ‘kay? You’re safe. I’m gonna get a little closer. Don’t be scared ‘a me.”

As Yuuma gets closer and his vision adjusts to the dim light, he can see the vampire much better. And with that, comes a sudden shock—

It’s  _ Kou.  _

Yuuma would know him anywhere. The soft, straw-blonde hair, even overgrown and tangled as it is. One blue eye and one that’s scarred over and closed. Kou’s narrow shoulders, thin wrists, and the set of his cheeks that seems even more gaunt than before. There are scars on his body that Yuuma doesn’t remember, and he’s lost weight. Kou looks up at Yuuma with terror in his eye. There’s a glassy, hollow look there, sickening as it is. 

And Kou just  _ shakes.  _ His shoulders hunch up and he stares like he’s expecting to be struck. Yuuma’s heart shatters in his chest. Seeing his brother like this, more broken than before... it’s everything Yuuma has dreaded. He’d hoped that maybe,  _ maybe  _ Kou could have had better where he’d been taken, but this just proves that he’d been foolish to have it.

“H-Hey,” he whispers, “it’s me. Do you remember me, Kou? C’mon, you have to. It’s  _ me. _ ” His voice is weak. This sight is agony. 

Kou remains frozen for a long moment. He’s still shivering and his posture is that of fear. But finally, he blinks, drops his head, and curls in onto himself. “Yuuma...” he breathes, “I gotta be dreaming again.” 

A bitter, fragile laugh leaves him, a broken sound. 

“Not dreamin’. I’m right here.” Yuuma lies down next to Kou, bringing himself down to his level. “I’m h-here, Kou. You’re awake, I promise.”

Kou shakes even harder. He whimpers, low and pained. Yuuma takes in the naked arch of his spine, with every vertebra visible through the skin. He’s covered in bruises and a few cuts, and there are scars from whips and other unimaginable tools carved into his back in endless rows. His hair has grown down to his shoulders by now. The shaggy length makes him look even smaller and more fragile. Yuuma tries to breathe. He can’t take this. 

“Ah... r-really...? This is real...?” Kou questions. His voice is weak and trails off as badly as Azusa’s used to. “For a minute, I... I-I thought I’d finally died.” Kou swallows. His eye closes tight. He keeps  _ shaking.  _

On reflex, Yuuma reaches out to touch him, to comb his fingers through Kou’s hair like he used to. But all he earns is a sharp, painful flinch. Kou jerks back and cowers. His bruised hands, crooked-fingered, scrabble against the floor of the cage. The terror in his eye grows even stronger. 

“N-No,” he whimpers again. “Please... p-please— I-I’ll be good, d-don’t hurt me—” And then, he begs in a voice achingly thin and scared. 

Yuuma can feel his heart shattering then and there. He’s somewhere between sickened and ready to cry. But now’s not the time to get caught up in his own worries. He has to take care of his brother first. He  _ has  _ to. 

“Easy, you’re okay. C’mon, you’re not bad. I ain’t gonna hurt you, either. You know me. You’re my brother. I’d  _ never. _ ” Kou only cowers when Yuuma keeps reaching for him. Yuuma’s hand meets his head, Kou flinches again and lets out a little cry, and Yuuma just pets his head like he did when they were smaller. Kou always did well with affection, even when he was scared enough that every touch seemed like a threat in his mindset. 

It takes a minute or two of terrified shaking, but Kou’s fear relents. He heaves a long, shuddering breath, then goes limp under Yuuma’s hand. A second later, it becomes apparent that he’s crying. The little sniffles and jolts of his chest make that clear. Yuuma just keeps petting him.

And Yuuma tries not to think about how he can see every rib through Kou’s thin, bruise-dotted skin. He tries not to think about the fact that there’s dried, crusty blood on Kou’s thighs. He drags those thoughts to the farthest corner of his mind and leaves them there to rot. Kou’s been through shit before. He’s strong. He’s taken more cruelty than the other three of them put together, and he’s still somehow,  _ somehow  _ alive through it all. Yuuma hates the sight of his brother so broken, but at least— 

At least they’re together again in a place that might be safe.

When Kou is mostly relaxed and only lightly sobbing, Yuuma pulls back. “Alright,” he says, “I’m gonna get ya’ some clothes and see about cleanin’ you up. Our owner’ll probably allow it. They don’t like it when I’m dirty inside. You just rest here. I’ll be back in a minute or two.”

Kou whines. He stares up at Yuuma with his one eye, looking like he never wants the one safe thing in his world to leave. Yuuma grits his teeth and forces himself. He has to do what’s needed, not just what he wants. 

He tracks down his owner and asks what he needs to. Dismissively, they tell Yuuma to do what he needs to in order to handle things. Using the back bathroom is fine so long as he cleans up after himself, and clothes for Kou are in a box in the laundry room with his other things. Yuuma nods. At least he has permission. At least he can take care of his brother like this. 

Coaxing Kou out of his cage is a challenge. Yuuma winds up spending a full five minutes just trying to get him to sit up. When he’s upright, even on his hands and knees, Kou is painfully unsteady. He’s weak and barely has the energy to keep himself up. Yuuma debates just picking him up and carrying him to the bathroom himself, but he knows that’s unwise. Kou has to be able to handle himself, if even a little bit. Even if the way his gaze flickers around and the way he shakes makes Yuuma feel sick. 

Getting Kou to leave the laundry room is even harder. He whimpers and begs not to have to go out into the hallway. What he’s afraid of is obvious, but Yuuma doesn’t let himself dwell on it. He promises Kou that they’re safe, that their owner is on the other side of the house, and that he’s the only one who’ll be there. Kou’s breathing goes rabbit-fast and he can’t stop looking around warily, but eventually, he manages to move. 

Yuuma runs warm-ish water in the tub. He doesn’t want to cross any boundaries by using up the heat, but getting some warmth into Kou will probably do him a lot of good. Kou huddles on the cold tile and  _ watches.  _ Yuuma tries to force himself to smile just as he used to back then. 

And then, he helps Kou into the water. He whimpers again when he’s submerged, and Yuuma has to hold back a gag at the way that the water discolors around him the faintest bit from blood and dirt.

He asks if he can help Kou clean up. Kou hesitates, but nods. They both know he’s too weak to do much for himself right now, as he is. 

As gentle as he can make himself be, Yuuma scrubs the dirt off of Kou’s skinny form. The water slowly turns a dull reddish-brown. He’s as careful around the bruises and open wounds as he can, but Kou still winces every time the washcloth hits something too tender. Even so, he closes his good eye and leans into every bit of the contact like he’s starved for it. 

When it comes to washing  _ those  _ places, Kou once again looks terrified. He lets Yuuma clean his thighs and the space between, but the whole time, he clings to Yuuma with one shaking hand, digging his ragged nails in hard enough to draw blood. Yuuma whispers endless reassurances, promises that this isn’t going to happen again. He tries his best to keep himself together, but as the water turns increasingly off-colored and tinted with red, he finds himself fighting back frustrated, horrified tears. It’s been so long since he faced the results of what worth humans have found in Kou. 

But soon, it’s done. Yuuma washes Kou’s hair and draws it out in a sad attempt to reward him for taking the hard part so well. Kou sinks into the water and melts back into Yuuma’s hands. He’s crying again before long. Yuuma, once again, tries not to think about how long it’s been since someone gave him even a scrap of affection. How long it’s been since touch was used as anything but a means of causing pain. He hates those thoughts. 

“All done,” he says, then helps a shaky, but warmer Kou out onto a towel spread on the tile. He tries to smile. “Time to get dressed.” 

There was a pair of worn, cotton pants and a matching, long-sleeved shirt in the box meant for Kou. Yuuma thanks everything that the clothes cover as much as possible. He has to help him dress, but when he’s clothed, Kou seems to relax a bit. He has one more layer of protection on him. 

Once Kou is dressed, they return to the laundry room. Kou doesn’t seem calmer, not really, but he does seem a little more alert to the world. He’s not crying anymore, which Yuuma will take as a victory on its own. 

Kou returns to his cage quickly. He curls up on the metal floor, tucking his limbs in close like he’s trying to stay warm. With damp hair, he probably is chilled. Yuuma wishes that he could get some proper blankets for his brother, but the only one available, the one in the box, is just as thin and worn as the clothes. Even so, he tucks that one in around Kou, closely enough that it might feel even a little bit more secure. Safer, maybe. 

“Get some rest,” Yuuma says and pats Kou’s head again. “I’ve got work to do, but you just need ta’ stay here and get used to things. I’ll be back shortly, ‘kay? And I’ll sleep in here tonight. No one will hurt you. Not while I’m here.” It’s a lie of a promise, they both know, but saying it is all Yuuma can do. He drags his fingers against Kou’s scalp once more. 

And then, he has to go back outside. Kou just curls up tighter and closes his good eye. Yuuma  _ hates  _ to leave him, but he doesn’t have much of a choice. Once he gets his work done, he can spend the night here. 

Protecting his little brother just like he should. 

. . . 

The first night is hard. Kou has nightmares. Deep, horrible nightmares that leave him whimpering in his sleep and lashing out at Yuuma over the slightest touch. Kou wakes up with his chest heaving and his eye wide, a silent scream on his lips. He’s frozen. He’s trapped in the dream even now. 

“Hey, easy,” Yuuma tries to comfort. “Kou, you gotta calm down.”

They’re lucky that Kou’s been trained to be quiet too. Waking up their owner would end badly, even if it’s no one’s fault. Kou is on the verge of hyperventilating. Yuuma can see every rib straining against his skin as he breathes sharp and deep. He rubs Kou’s back, from the base of his spine up to the fuzzy little hairs at the base of his neck, in a poor attempt at soothing some of the fear. He knows that there’s no forgetting what Kou’s been through. Even awake, those memories will haunt him forever. 

He sits there for what feels like a long, long time. Kou can’t get words out and tears are spilling from his eye once again. His eyebrows are furrowed together in an expression of misery that hurts to see. 

“I-I... I’m tr-trying...” Kou whispers. “I’m s-sorry... sorry...  _ sorry... _ ”

It’s an endless loop of apologies. Yuuma’s own words stick in his throat like it’s glued shut. He wishes he could punch everyone who’s made Kou like this in the fucking  _ face...  _ but those thoughts aren’t smart, even if they stay in his head. Vampires will never be able to defend anyone. He’s a pet, not a person, and Kou is property just the same. The best he can do is this. 

The best he can do is clean up after everyone who’s broken Kou down to what he is now. He can sit here and rub Kou’s back, and not much else. 

Yuuma can’t take it.

He coaxes Kou out of the cage and over to the pile of his own blankets that he’s temporarily set up in here. He gets Kou to lie down, bundles up all of those blankets and the one from the cage around him, then lies down right behind Kou, pressed up against his back as close as he can get. 

Yuuma’s body is bigger than Kou’s by so, so much. They’re both lean, but Yuuma is toned, decently-fed muscle, while Kou is all skin and bones. The scrawny body in his arms shakes and shakes as Kou sobs. Yuuma just pulls him as close as possible and holds on tight. It’s been what feels like forever since he was able to do this for his brother, since he was able to feel like he could do  _ something  _ to keep him safe. It feels like being in the shelter again, like being on the streets, like once again, it’s just them alone. 

“M-Missed you—” Kou sobs. He rolls over and slots himself against Yuuma’s chest, as tightly as a leech. He’s sobbing and can’t stop. Yuuma just squeezes him as tightly as he dares and closes his eyes. 

“Missed you too.”

“...’m scared to go to sleep,” Kou murmurs after another minute or two of crying. “I’m  _ tired.  _ I-I want to sleep so b-bad, Yuuma... but I’m sc-scared—” He sobs again. His tiny body shudders and tucks itself even closer to Yuuma’s chest. His breathing is still painfully sharp and quick. 

It’s obvious that he’s exhausted. Yuuma has no idea where Kou was before this, but judging by his wound-covered body and the blood on his thighs, it can’t be anything good. He needs rest, and badly. 

“You’re safe, promise. Just relax and pretend like we’re at the shelter. Don’t look around. ‘m right here. Ruki and Azusa are just a ways over, and we’ll see ‘em in the morning. You can sleep. We’ll—” His voice breaks. “We’re all together, just think that. Go to sleep, and I’ll be right here to protect ya’.” It feels awful to say it, but... pretending like they’re all together again is the best they can do. It’s comforted Yuuma himself to imagine it. 

For a moment, Kou cries even harder. He bites down on his hand to stifle his wails, but slowly, he cries himself out. His sobs trickle out to next to nothing, and he goes limp where he lies. Yuuma holds onto him through all of it, struggling himself not to break down. Keeping it together is all he can do. He wants them all to be back together  _ so badly,  _ but he has Kou now, and this is better than anything he could have hoped for. He has his brother in his arms where he can keep him safe. Or at least—

He can pretend. And Yuuma will do anything to make that a reality. Holding on right now both tears his heart to pieces and gives him hope.

They stay like that for the rest of the night. 

. . . 

From there, Kou settles in. Kind of. Their owner doesn’t seem to have much interest in him, which is both good and bad. Yuuma is left struggling to figure out why the person would have  _ bought  _ Kou if they didn’t have any interest in doing something with him. Why they’d even want him. 

But Kou is safe. Ignored as he is, there’s no one getting too close, no one putting their hands where they shouldn’t be, and no one scaring him worse. Yuuma has time to help his brother try to simply calm down. 

Kou is broken. Yuuma’s known that since the first time someone dragged him off for who knows what kind of torture and Kou came back with a haunted look in his eyes that’s never gone away. Now, though, it seems worse. It makes sense. They always had each other, at the very least, so it makes sense that being torn apart and left to face the world on his own would have broken Kou down to a point like the one he’s at right now. 

The haunted look is stronger than ever before. Kou spends most of his time huddled up in his cage, either shaking or asleep. Often both. Their owner hasn’t given him any directions yet, so he’s able to rest and recover some measure of strength. Yuuma wishes that he could feed him. Kou is so thin it’s worrying, but there’s not much that can be done about that. 

Yuuma can just stay by his side and hope for the best. 

With every moment not working spent by Kou’s side, their owner quickly picks up on how close the two are. Fortunately, the human doesn’t do anything cruel with this knowledge. They simply tell Yuuma that he can move his things into the laundry room and stay there for a while. They want their new pet to adjust properly, so it’d be best if that happens as quickly and smoothly as possible. Kou seems to like him, after all. 

It’s on maybe the fifth day that Kou has been there when their owner decides to feed them. It’s only been about a week and a half since Yuuma himself was last fed, but two pouches of blood are pressed into his hands nonetheless, along with an order to make sure Kou eats like he needs to. 

In the laundry room, as soon as Kou catches sight of the blood, he tenses. Wary or not, the appetite of a starved vampire is a powerful thing.

“Yeah, we’re gettin’ fed,” Yuuma says. “They said it was for both of us, so here. You eat first, ‘kay?” He scoots in close to Kou’s cage and offers up one of the pouches in a nearly-shaking hand. Please, please eat. 

Kou hesitates. He stares at the blood for a long moment, wide-eyed. He acts like he doesn’t know what to do, and Yuuma is left wondering when the last time he was fed even  _ was.  _ To be as wasted-away as he is, Kou has to have been starved to a worrying degree. It makes him sick once again. 

“You need to drink it. Just go slow,” Yuuma instructs. 

Kou takes the pouch after another long moment, but he still looks confused and nervous. He keeps glancing up at Yuuma and back. 

“What’s wrong?”

“...what d-do we have to do fo-for it...?” Kou asks eventually in a voice so jaded that it almost hurts to hear. Yuuma both knows exactly what he’s implying and has so much to wonder about that he can’t stand it. 

“Nothin’. It’s just food. Owner wants us to be in functional shape, y’know? And I need you to be okay too. If... If they decide that they want anything, I’ll do it, ‘kay? I’ll take care of it.” Yuuma tries to sound strong and reassuring even when all he wants to do is pull Kou into his arms again and keep him there until no one can hurt him like they have ever again. 

Looking like he doesn’t trust those words for a second, Kou hesitantly raises the pouch to his lips. He bites down softly, carefullly, and not spilling a drop. He feeds slower than Yuuma would have thought possible considering the state his body’s in. Starved as Kou is, anyone would have expected him to drain the whole thing and beg for more. But Kou just takes what he has. He closes his one eye and drinks until the pouch is drained, then licks his lips for every trace of copper that might be left behind. 

“...thank you,” he mumbles when he’s done, passing Yuuma the empty pouch, and dropping right back down to the floor of his cage. 

“Yeah,” Yuuma says dumbly. He  _ knows  _ he needs to drink too, but every big-brother instinct in him is saying to give Kou his share as well. As if that would do much of anything in the long-run. As if it could really help. 

So Yuuma drinks quickly. He needs to keep his own strength up so he can be of use to anyone. He gets that, whether he likes it or not. And when he’s done, he sits down right next to Kou’s cage. He lets his hand find Kou’s hair once again and trace through the straw-colored strands. Kou shivers all over and leans into the touch just as he always does. From where he’s lying, Yuuma can see the scars peeking out from under his slid-back sleeves. His hair is the way of the big, awful wound that took out his eye. 

And... Yuuma is acutely aware that his brother amounts to a broken toy. For humans, there’s not much left in him but something to play with. It’s painful. It’s sick. It makes Yuuma wish for things that no vampire ever should, but it’s  _ true.  _ No one can ever protect Kou. Yuuma himself was lucky enough to find a good home, one where he sleeps in a heated garage and only gets hit when he  _ really  _ fucks up. He was luckier than he can imagine. 

The world granted Kou no such mercy. In the time since Yuuma last saw him, he’s been through a living nightmare. Will this home be any different? Yuuma can only hope that the answer is yes. 

“Yuuma...?” Kou’s little voice pipes up. 

“Yeah?”

“Am I gonna g-get hurt here too?”

“...I hope not. Y’know how humans are. I’ll do everything I can to protect ya’, but... we’ll hope for the best, yeah? Keep positive an’ all.”

Kou hums softly. He curls up a little tighter and leans into Yuuma’s hand. Silence falls between them. They both know that these good moments can’t last. Yuuma has work to do outside. He’ll have to leave. While he’s out, anything could happen. The fear hangs over both of them like a stormcloud. 

So Yuuma stays for as long as he can. He runs his fingers through Kou’s hair, talks about the plants and the flowers outside, and tries to make everything seem okay. They got fed. Yuuma’s only been hit a couple of times while he’s been here. They have blankets and clothes and are allowed to stay together. It won’t be that bad, not this time. Yuuma tries his best to convince Kou that those things might be true— and convince himself. 

He has to go back outside. He leans down and presses a kiss to Kou’s forehead, right above the good eye. “Be safe,” he says. 

“Yeah,” Kou nods. “I’ll wait for you. W-We’re... together now. Again. it’ll st-stay that way...” It’s less of a statement and more of a prayer. The two unspoken names hang heavily over both of them. 

“Together. An’ it’s stayin’ that way. Be good. I’ll be back.”

With one more smile, trying to look more stable than he feels, Yuuma leaves the room. He shuts the door behind him like it’d ever be enough of a barrier. As big as he is, as strong as he is, he can’t protect anyone. No part of him is good enough to take Kou’s place should things go wrong. But for now, they’re right. It’s okay. Maybe this will actually be okay. Yuuma grabs his tools from the garage and hopes. 


End file.
